A World Not My Own
by Santaire
Summary: When I landed on Earth I never expected that I would be waking up 369 years in the past the next day. I never expected that I would go from fighting aliens to meeting the Council. Above all else I never expected to meet Commander Shepard, the woman who would change my life. For a while I thought I was trapped in a world not my own. Now I realise I was set free.
1. Chapter 1

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**New Mombasa – Earth**

**October 21st, 2552 – ETA to dimension jump 10 minutes**

I sidestepped the Elite's lunge, grabbed his wrist and twisted it brutally, hearing the crack of breaking bones before I snapped a knee into his arm, shattering it. The Elite roared in pain, trying to pull away from me. I would not let him get away so easily however, wrapping my hand around the Energy Sword's hilt and thrusting a leg sideways, snapping his ribs and throwing him back while simultaneously ripping the weapon out of his hands. I dropped it, reaching down to my hip and the M6 resting there. I felt my gauntlet close on the grip and snapped my arm up, bringing my left hand round to steady my right as I opened fire, sending slug after slug into the Elite. I put a round between his mandibles and watched as the back of his skull exploded, spraying blood and fragments of bone and brain matter spraying out to cover the ground behind him as he fell backwards.

Then I was moving, diving away as several plasma grenades landed where I had been standing only moments before. Snatching my own blade up from where it had rested only moments before I slapped the inactive hilt to my side, letting the maglocks activate while my left hand still held the pistol, firing at the Grunts who had thrown the grenades even as they ran in terror from the 'demon' who had killed the Elite they had been looking to for orders.

_"You know, we would both live a lot longer if you would stop attacking Elites in close quarters,"_ Serah's voice whispered in my ear. Or rather, in my brain. I was used to it by now, but her presence still left a feeling of icy cold in my mind. I grinned beneath my helmet. "But if I stopped you would no longer have any reason to scold me. I would not deprive you of that, you enjoy it far too much." I heard her sigh in weary acceptance and my grin turned into a smirk.

Maybe I should stop for a moment and clarify this. Serah is my 'Smart' AI. Based on the brain of a prominent scientist who had been studying AI and the human brain, she'd been with me for only a few months at that point, since just after Reach fell. Based on the brain of some scientist who had been dedicated to studying the Covenant, something that fortunately meant that Serah had kept that knowledge and knew exactly where I could shoot to do the most damage. Another gift of her donor was that she was astonishingly good at analysing new species we encountered and pointing out weak points for me.

_"It really is obscene though, you will get both of us killed eventually. I don't know about you, but I like being alive; or at least, I enjoy the weird semblance of life that I have"_

"You could leave the moaning till after the firefight is over," I hissed, stepping out of cover and opening fire with my pistol on a Grunt that was still in the open.

_"Sorry,"_ was the only reply I got, though I had a feeling she didn't actually mean it. Still, I had an enemy to kill and I had a weapon to do it with. I paced towards the damn aliens, aiming down the sights of my pistol until a Jackal stuck his head out of cover and I blew it off. I then darted forward towards where the rest of the aliens were sheltering. I stooped as I passed over the corpse of the Elite I had killed earlier, swapping my pistol to my left hand as I picked up his plasma rifle in my right.

I leapt over the rubble behind which the remaining Covenant were sheltering and fired four shots with my pistol, dropping the two Grunts to my left. I landed awkwardly, a loose piece of rubble skidding away and causing me to stumble. This unfortunately gave the two Jackals and three Grunts to my right an opportunity to open fire however my shields took the plasma, giving me time to straighten up and open fire with the plasma rifle still clenched in my right fist. It splashed across the aliens, melting through them and while the shields held by the Jackals did hold for a few seconds the devices failed and they died too.

_"Could you possibly be any more reckless?" _Serah complained before pausing._ "Wait, please don't answer that."_

I smirked while I began heading to the Pelican that was my ticket out of this mess. "Yeah, I thought you might change your mind about saying that considering my track record for doing reckless things. Let me see, there was that time when I fought four Hunter pairs at the same time without any backup. There was that time when I went up against several Elites, including one Elite Major, while I was unarmed… wait, I actually did that last one several times and against varying numbers of Elites and different ranks of those involved. There was that time when I jumped out of a burning Pelican that was in freefall above Reach, though I was with Fred and Kelly and the rest of Red Team then so I can't claim all the credit. Oh and yes, there was that time when I got in a HEV and fired myself at a Covenant Destroyer because I was bored of watching the space battle. Need I go on, or are you finally convinced that I can be far more reckless than I just was?"

_"I am fully convinced."_

"Good," I smirked.

_"Although you never did that last one."_

I told her to be quiet and continued my way for several minutes before I finally came within sight of the Pelican and I climbed on-board, looking around at the marines who had already made it. I stood at the hatch and gazed out across the ruins of the city before turning my eyes up to look at the Covenant Carrier, the flagship of the fleet that had brought all these bastards to Earth. It seemed that the Carrier or something near it was our new target as the Pelican swooped round in that direction, flying towards the hulking behemoth that dominated the sky above the city. I glanced back at the crates next to the cockpit, finally realising why the Pelican was carrying so many weapons – both human and Covenant – and a wealth of ammo. It seemed like it would be a smooth ride with the marines joking and Serah humming in my mind. That was until the message came through from the pilot on the speaker. "Jesus Christ, the Carrier's jumping to slipspace inside the city."

"Hang on," I shouted at the marines, slamming my hand on the button to shut the hatch and dashing to the last remaining restraint harness, strapping myself in and bracing. I heard a shout from the cockpit, several screams and then everything went black.

* * *

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**Location Unknown**

**Date and Time Unknown**

I woke slowly to Serah repeating my name over and over. She must have worked out I was awake from something in my mind because she sighed in relief. _"Thank God Ethan, you were out cold for almost an hour after the jump."_ I looked around the interior of the Pelican, cursing as I saw that every marine in the craft was dead; some of them had their heads at weird angles from a snapped neck, a couple had flatten chest where the restraints had crushed their ribs but others looked untouched but were still quite clearly dead – no doubt killed by the shock or some injury I couldn't see from where I was sitting. _"… I have no idea where we are, but we're definitely not on Earth anymore. You know this really is quite amazing; we were caught in the edges of the slipspace portal but rather than going through it to wherever the Covenant were going we appear to have dropped out in a completely different place to wherever they were headed. This really is incredible, we could be the first humans to have ever been here..."_

I interrupted her ramblings abruptly. "Serah," I said very calmly. "When you say you don't know where we are, do you mean you don't know what planet we're on or do you mean where in space we are."

_"What do you mean by planet Ethan? We aren't on a planet."_

I took a deep breath and tried to keep my emotions under control. "Are you telling me Serah, that we are in deep space? Are you telling me that you have no idea where in the galaxy we are and are you telling me that we are in an uncharted area of space without any nearby sources of oxygen and that you were too busy dreaming of what might be here to realise that I have maybe fifteen minutes left before I run out of air and die?"

_"Oh."_

"Bloody hell woman, get your priorities straight," I cursed, slapping my hand on the restraint release and standing. "Are there any life signs nearby?" The reply was a negative. "Any large masses we could land on?" Again a negative. While we had been talking I had made my way to the hatch and I pushed the release to open it, but it seemed that it hadn't survived the jump in great condition for as I stepped back to examine it I saw several buckled bolts and large dents. I found one section where there was a tear in the metal, presumably from the impact, and peered through it into the cold depths of space.

_"Ethan?"_ Serah's voice was quiet but with a noticeable urgency that made me pay very close attention. _"We have something incoming, it's big enough to be a ship but it's of no model I've ever seen before."_

"Time to lay out the welcome wagon then," I said, pulling the metal of the hatch back into place and going to the crates still at the front of the Pelican. At least they were still in one piece. I reached into the pile and felt my hand come to rest of the familiar stock of an MA5C. I slid my hand along the body of the gun until I found the trigger, pulling the weapon out of the clutter and spinning it to press the butt into my shoulder while I ran a few diagnostics on it and set up a link between its targeting system and my HUD, watching as the reticule appeared and the ammo counter in the top right of my view flashed into being. Other than a couple of dents there seemed to be no damages, so I held it loosely in my left hand while I scavenged some grenades and some ammo from the pile.

It was less than half an hour before I could see the incoming ship and I moved to the front of the Pelican as it swept over me. We passed through some kind of shimmering blue field and Serah's voice was astonished when she spoke. _"Ethan, whatever that field we just passed through was we now have air and AG."_ Naturally the last word she spoke came just as the Pelican dropped to the bottom of whatever space we were in, hitting the deck-plating with a clang and causing me to stagger. I righted myself and placed the assault rifle on my back, maglocking it into place. I paced slowly to the closed hatch and yanked the bolts holding it shut out of the way, even tearing one of them off entirely. I then proceeded to place both hands against it and shove it open before walking slowly down the ramp it formed onto the deck of whatever ship I was on-board.

What I saw made me stop dead in my tracks. "Serah," I said, my throat suddenly gone dry. "I think we might be in more trouble than we thought."

I looked out across the hangar bay of a ship at an approaching group of humans but what really worried me was the presence of some kind of, creature, walking with them. It was avian in appearance, standing at about the same height as most of the people it was walking with. Two mandibles, one on either side of its head, were visible and made me think of an Elite, my right hand unconsciously twitching towards my pistol grip. It wore black armour with a few red bands and its face was painted red and white. _"Intriguing,"_ Serah spoke quietly in my ear before her tone changed into what I had learned was the voice she used when examining anything. It had even been the tone she had used when I first got her, examining me that time. _"Subject appears to be avian in descent, however shares characteristics with many predator species such as forward facing eyes and claws. Note metallic carapace – possible naturally developed radiation shield?"_

However, despite the strangeness of the alien it was not the only odd thing in the group that was approaching. The armour worn by the soldiers was of a make unknown to me and the lead soldier, a woman, had an unfamiliar insignia on it. A white N7 next to a red triangle. Their weapons were also odd, the two men carried odd looking guns that nevertheless slightly resembled the MA5C I was currently carrying but what I found most remarkable was the fact that all three soldiers and the alien were carrying what looked to be a folded down pistol at their hip and the humans had several more of the strange weapons on their backs.

The lead man was wearing what looked to be dress blues with golden trim and as he came to stand at about ten metres from me he halted and gave me a long, hard stare. "God, whatever's wearing that suit is massive," I heard one of the male soldiers behind him mutter as he gaped at me only to be reprimanded by the woman.

"Stow it Jenkins," she hissed and I turned my attention to her. Standing at maybe six foot she was slim, though the armour hid her form very effectively. Her hair was black and kept back from her face, though a few unruly strands fell over her right eye. She was pale skinned too, though nowhere near as pale as I and my SPARTAN brothers and sisters were. She was, well, attractive. Odd; I had never had thoughts like that before. The only women I had ever encountered were either Dr Halsey who was like a mother to me, another SPARTAN – all of whom were like my siblings or someone I met in passing in the middle of a warzone while being shot at which didn't exactly give me time to talk to them.

I shifted my attention back to the man in charge, most definitely an officer and probably the captain of the ship if I had to guess and I examined him. Evidently an experienced soldier from the way he held himself and the methodical way he studied me. His stance was relaxed but it was a warrior's relaxation, the kind that still gave him the ability to be ready for combat in an instant. It was also the stance of one who is used to giving orders and having them obeyed. _"You know,"_ Serah mused in my head. _"This could be a group of humans who split centuries ago. They may not even remember or know of the UNSC. Their comfort with the alien shows that they must have no knowledge of the human Covenant war for if they did I doubt they could stand so comfortably with any alien creature, too high a risk. If this is indeed a first contact scenario then you will have to make a good impression."_

"Good impression," I spoke quietly, my speakers shut off so that my words could only be heard by myself and Serah. "Got it."

I snapped to attention smoothly and saluted the officer who was leading the group in front of me. "Petty Officer Second Class SPARTAN 001 of the United Nations Space Command." I relaxed my stance and lifted my left hand up to join my right, slowly grasping my helmet with them. I disengaged the seals and lifted it off, bringing it down to my side. I heard the woman's breath catch in her throat and the younger soldier gasp and saw out of the corner of my eye the third soldier do a double take as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. I wasn't surprised for I had experienced such reactions before from UNSC servicemen and civilians. I was hardly an ordinary looking man. My skin was vampire white from spending so long in my armour and in cryo sleep. I was scarred, one particularly nasty one running down in a straight line from just above to my left eye to just below my lip. It had blinded the original eye and I could only see now because I had received a flash clone; it had been deep enough to reach bone and in an X-Ray you could see the damage to my skull from that cut alone. There was also a smattering of tiny scars on my right cheek. There were many more on the rest of my body

However I was impressed by the officer and the alien for neither had any physical reaction; they didn't make a sound or movement, though the officer's examination focussed on my head immediately after I had removed the helmet and if he was indeed fazed by my scars he did not remark on them. Indeed he seemed to ignore them, focussing instead on my eyes into which he stared searchingly, presumably looking for anything to tell him whether I was a threat or not. The alien to his right was also gazing at me, though he seemed more interested in my amour and weapons than in me.

After several tense moments he returned the salute. "Captain David Anderson of the Systems Alliance. The Turian beside me is Nihlus Kyrik, one of the most decorated Spectres serving the Citadel Council and the woman behind me is Commander Jane Shepard, N7 and Hero of the Blitz. Welcome aboard the SSV Normandy Petty Officer."

_"Alien species named Turian. Note references to 'Spectres' and 'Citadel Council',"_ Serah continued her examinations of the people in front of us but I pushed her to the back of my mind, allowing me to focus on them. I avoided responding also in the hope of not being accused of insanity

"It is an honour sir."

"If I may Petty Officer, I would like to ask you about this United Nations Space Command. Who are they?"

"The United Nations Space Command, more commonly known as the UNSC, is the military, exploratory, and scientific agency of the Unified Earth Government sir. The UNSC was formed halfway through the 22nd century and mainly oversaw United Nations military operations in space. We are also responsible for leading the war against the Covenant sir," I said, standing at ease and reeling off the information like it had been rehearsed; which, to be honest, it kinda had as the importance of the UNSC had been one of the main lessons we had been taught back on Reach. I was expecting some confusion maybe, a lack of knowledge on the UNSC and possibly even some questions on the nature of the Covenant. What I did not expect were the looks of shock on every face.

_"I believe Ethan, that we may have just said something we shouldn't have,"_ Serah's tone was dry and I tensed, my right hand moving across my back towards the butt of my pistol, though I kept it out of the line of sight of the people in front of me. Nevertheless the woman, Commander Shepard, and the alien stiffened, their own hands moving towards their weapons. "Ethan stand down, we don't want to cause an incident if we can help it," Serah hissed at me and I gradually allowed myself to relax back, though the other did not relax, keeping their hands near their guns. No matter, I knew that as long as I could get my helmet on before anyone got a headshot my shields would give me enough time to take them down.

First target would be the alien as I had no idea what he was capable of and so taking him out of the equation was essential, three steps forward to close the range gap, a feint for the head followed by a kick to the inside of his right knee to immobilize him, grab head-crest with left hand and yank his head down, followed by right elbow strike to the back of his neck. Then I'd move on to the Commander who would not doubt have managed to draw her weapon by that point, twist her right arm behind her back and apply enough pressure to break. Back kick to the older marine, aim for centre of chest to break ribs. Toss Shepard at the final marine to knock him down and put them both on the floor. Final target, the Captain. Right jab to the head to daze, spin him and get him in a lock, arm around his throat. Use left hand to draw pistol and place it to the side of his head as a discouragement to anyone else. Conclusion: Turian down – possibly paralyzed, Commander – right arm broken and possibly unconscious, older marine – ribs broken and possible punctured lungs, younger marine – mostly intact, Captain – pinned and hostage as surety against any other possible attacks.

I noted that the two marines shivered from my clinical examination as I planned that out and even the Turian and the Commander twitched slightly, their hands edging ever nearer to their sidearms. However the Captain again didn't even move a muscle, the man could've given John a lesson on staying calm in the face of danger.

"When you say the UNSC are the militant arm of the United Earth Government Petty Officer, do you mean that they are based on Earth, the third planet from Sol and located in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way," Anderson said slowly.

This time, it was my turn to look confused. "Yes sir that is what I mean."

"Petty Officer, what do you believe the current year to be?"

"I am unsure as time is difficult to judge during Slipspace jumps, but the last date I knew for certain was 21st October 2552. Why sir?"

"Because Petty Officer, the current date is 2183."

I took a step back, stunned into silence. In my head Serah whistled softly. _"Well, that explains a lot of things and at the same time creates some very important questions. You see, if this was still our timeline then the UNSC would have been formed very recently but this man seems to have no knowledge of it and I know for a fact that in the Universe there was never a Systems Alliance and we never met any alien species until we encountered the Covenant."_

"Are you telling me," I began quiet enough that the people in front of me couldn't hear, "that we are in an alternate timeline, an alternate universe?"

_"As much as I hate to say this, yes Ethan."_

"Well damn," I suddenly said loud enough for them to hear me. I turned to Anderson. "Sir, I have no doubt that you have questions for me just as I have questions for you but if we are going to do this then I'm going to need a drink."

_"You've never drank before."_

"I never had a reason to."

**Author's Note: Few things to say before this really gets started:  
1) Yes, this is my first fanfic  
2) I will mess with canon a lot, but this will still follow the basic story of the three games  
3) There will be eventual OC/FShep. There will also be some romance between members of the crew and the ground team though I'll go into that later  
3) This is not a crossover because the only things coming from the Halo universe are my OCs, some weapons and a few flashbacks  
4) Update schedule will be erratic at the best of times, but I'll try for an update at least every fortnight  
5) Rating may increase later on  
6) If you're intending to flame then please just don't, I have better things to do with my time than read it and there must be something better you could do with yours than write it**


	2. Chapter 2

**Commander Jane Shepard**

**SSV Normandy SR1**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 08:43**

When the Normandy picked up the mysterious contact on its scanners Shepard's first instinct had been to call the marines to battle stations, ready to fend off a pirate boarding action. She shook it off, though she still took the time to visit the crew deck and talk with Lieutenant Alenko, telling him to make sure he and his men were ready for trouble. She pulled on her armour and gathered her weapons before a call from the CIC had her striding up there, passing through the door to see Anderson and Nihlus standing near each other and looking at a digital render of the object they were approaching.

She came to attention behind the Captain and the Spectre and saluted, Anderson distractedly returning the salute before waving her over to study the render as he and the Turian were doing. Shepard slipped in between the two of them, feeling no discomfort at the closeness of the Spectre and locking eyes with Pressley as he shifted uncomfortably. Satisfied that the navigator wasn't going to cause any problems she returned her attention to the object which so enraptured Anderson and Nihlus. It was oddly shaped with short stubby wings and a long body. If she were to comment, Jane would say that it appeared to be a troop transport of some kind and likely an atmospheric one rather than a void transport due to the presence of wings. However its presence in dark space far from the nearest planet made that far less likely although it could have been dumped by a freighter; after all, it was quite clearly wrecked beyond all capacity for further flight with massive dents, rips and even holes in the metal.

Examining the scan she saw the marker that indicated that there was a life sign on-board but the signal was oddly distorted as if there was something causing interference in the scan, a shocking possibility for the Normandy's tech was state-of-the-art and anything that could disrupt its sensors would quite likely be invisible to those of an average ship. This suggested a trap; the object would appear lifeless so that a passing ship might pick it up with the intention of stripping it for salvage and when they brought it into their cargo hold whatever was on-board would take over the ship. Jane instantly scrapped that idea for there was no way a creature could take over a whole ship alone.

"We're closing in on it Captain," Joker's voice came loud and clear through the radio.

"Open the cargo bay door Joker," Anderson ordered before turning to Shepard and Nihlus. "Meet me down there in five minutes. Commander, get two marines armoured and bring them with you. If the inhabitant of the craft is hostile, I want us to be prepared to take it down before it can do any damage to the Normandy."

Shepard joined Anderson and Nihlus at the appointed time with Alenko and Jenkins in tow and stood with them as they gazed out into the dark void of space and the rapidly approaching ship.

Passing through the field that kept the interior of the cargo bay pressurised the craft fell to the deck with a loud thud. There was a series of grinding sounds and clangs audible from the interior before what appeared to be the main access hatch fell, crashing into the deck. Walking down it like a ramp was something in green armour scarred from battle, carrying at its side what appeared to be a pistol, an odd hilt on its opposite hip and some kind of rifle on its back. Anderson began walking towards the creature and Shepard followed her commanding officer, staying a few paces behind him and Nihlus who had quickly caught up with the Captain and was now walking side by side with him. The came to a halt a few metres away from the creature and Shepard examined it, finally realising what had been bugging her since she first saw it stride down onto the Normandy's deck

Whatever it was, it was massive. Jenkins was standing behind her and he said as much before she hissed at him to shut up. Whatever the hell they were dealing with, the last thing they wanted to do was show any sort of weakness. Especially considering it was over seven foot tall and carrying several weapons.

Then it saluted, snapping to attention and bringing its arm up with fluid grace. "Petty Officer Second Class SPARTAN 001 of the United Nations Space Command," it barked in a voice that seemed robotic, emotionless. Pressing both hands to the bottom of its helmet, it pushed and a hiss of escaping air was heard as it, _he_, brought the helmet down to his side and held it loosely in his left hand. It seemed he was in fact human, a man. He seemed no older than her yet when she looked into his deep green eyes that to her seemed to sparkle, not with tears but with planned mischief, and yet seemed so pained she found herself at a loss. She felt her breath catch in her throat as he locked eyes with her for a moment before his attention shifted back to Anderson and she caught herself just before she would have sighed with relief that his oddly piercing gaze was no longer focussed on her.

Shepard gained a whole new level respect for the Captain as she saw him not so much as twitch at the new development, that the armoured giant was in fact a man and not an alien or a drone.

"Captain David Anderson of the Systems Alliance. The Turian beside me is Nihlus Kyrik, one of the most decorated Spectres serving the Citadel Council and the woman behind me is Commander Jane Shepard, N7 and Hero of the Blitz. Welcome aboard the SSV Normandy Petty Officer," Anderson broke the awkward silence that had come about after the Spartan had removed his helmet.

"It is an honour sir," was the quiet response and Jane instantly preferred his natural voice to the one created by his suit's speakers. It was soft and calm with a slight accent that sounded almost English.

Anderson asked him about the UNSC he had mentioned and what the man said in response caused Jane's jaw to drop in astonishment. At first, she had thought that maybe he was part of some paramilitary organisation and had been genetically modified maybe, though the instant he mentioned Earth she was on guard. But nothing could have prepared her for when he talked about it being formed mid-22nd Century. After all, it was only halfway through 2183 and yet this man talked about it as if the formation had been centuries before. Then he mentioned the Covenant and she was intrigued but kept silent, leaving the questions to the Captain.

She noticed the Spartan's arm shift slightly and correctly deduced that he was moving his hand closer to his sidearm and allowed her own right hand to come to rest on her pistol, prepared to draw it and fire if he made a move. Sweeping his eyes over the group the man relaxed his pose and his arm moved away from his weapon though the clinical examination he gave each and every member of the group caused the Commander to twitch involuntarily, shifting uncomfortably and tightening her hand on the butt of her pistol.

Anderson asked the question that had been on Shepard's mind since the Spartan first spoke of the UNSC. "When you say the UNSC are the militant arm of the United Earth Government Petty Officer, do you mean that they are based on Earth, the third planet from Sol and located in the Orion Arm of the Milky Way," the Captain said slowly.

A confused expression crossed the Spartan's face as he answered in the affirmative before going on to say that the last date he remembered was 21st October 2552 at a second question from the captain. Shepard nearly took a step back as she heard those words and had to fight the urge to go for her pistol. This man believed that the current date was almost four hundred years in the future. My reaction was nothing compared to the Spartan's however as he took a step back, apparently stunned into silence for several seconds. When he next spoke it was too quiet for any of us to hear, I could only tell he was speaking by the way his mouth was moving.

Suddenly he spoke up. "Well damn," was all he said before he stepped back to his former position and turned to Anderson. "Sir, I have no doubt that you have questions for me just as I have questions for you but if we are going to do this then I'm going to need a drink."

Anderson nodded then, just a single movement of his head but it was enough for me to relax and move my hand away from my weapon. "Spectre, Commander," Shepard snapped to attention as Anderson turned to her and Nihlus, "please walk with me and the Petty Officer. Lieutenant Alenko and Corporal Jenkins you are dismissed."

* * *

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**SSV Normandy SR1**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 08:45**

I nodded to Anderson and placed my helmet back on my head, sliding it into place and hearing a faint hiss as the seals locked into place. He looked at me curiously and I answered the unspoken question. "A soldier should always wear his full armour; plenty of men have lost their lives because they thought they were safe unarmoured on-board a ship or at a base and their enemy proved otherwise," I said. He nodded calmly and turned to lead me, the Spectre and the Commander to a lift that we stepped into.

_"__This is such a remarkable opportunity," _Serah practically squealed. _"Here we are, in a different timeline. So much we could learn, so much we could do."_

I spoke quietly within my helmet so that the others could not hear, but my voice was sombre. "And why would we need to learn anything Serah? There is nothing we can do with the information. No UNSC to bring it to. Even if there is a way back for us, how do we know whether we will arrive in the say time we left? Maybe we will go back and arrive in the past. Maybe it will be fifty years in the future and the Covenant will have driven us to extinction. It does not matter what we discover, what we learn. All we can do is keep to the oath we took, the oath to defend humanity. Maybe the UNSC does not exist anymore but I intend to keep that oath even so and I will continue to defend humanity until the day I die. A good death is the best I can hope for now."

_"__What happened to the man who always had something reassuring to say to his fellows? The man who kept them fighting for a reason and not just because it was what they were trained to do?"_

"He died on Reach. The man you saw on the Halo Ring was just him trying to stave off the inevitable. I am all that is left of who he was."

_"__He doesn't need to be gone."_

"Maybe so, but it is too late now to bring him back," I finally said with an air of finality, letting her know that this was not a conversation we would be returning to, no matter how much she wanted to.

I returned my focus to the outside world just as the lift doors opened, stepping out after the others and following them up a set of stairs into what I recognised as a type of CIC not unlike a Covenant one due to its position back from the bow unlike UNSC ships. We passed behind a screen that separated the CIC from what, when the door opened, I realised must be a briefing room.

Anderson gestured for me to sit down before sitting down on the opposite chair. Nihlus and Shepard remained standing.

"Shepard, go and ask Chakwas for some of that Serrice Ice Brandy she has," Anderson said, looking at the Commander who nodded before the Captain returned his attention to me. "Well Petty Officer. That drink you wanted will be here shortly and then you will explain everything to me," he said.

I nodded and was removing my helmet as the Commander returned with a bottle in one hand and a few glasses in another. She tossed a glass to me and offered another to Anderson who shook his head before shrugging and taking the third for herself, pouring a generous measure of the brandy before handing the bottle to me. I filled the cup and downed the brandy in one go, feeling the alcohol warm my insides and silently praying that I could still get drunk. No such luck for I was as sharp as ever despite how much I had drunk. I poured another glass and downed that too before handing the bottle back to the Commander who was looking at me incredulously.

"I am ready for your questions sir," I said to Anderson.

"Tell me about the UNSC," he said and so I told him. I told him of the formation and many of the events leading all the way up to the Insurrection. I told him about Operation: TREBUCHET and mentioned a strike team eliminating Colonel Robert Watts, though I left out that I was one of the team and that we weren't just Special Forces, but Spartans. I told him about several other Spartan raids that I had been a part of, never mentioning our nature but telling him about the objective. Then I finally came to Harvest and I hesitated for a moment before deciding to get it over with.

"We first encountered the Covenant on an outer colony called Harvest," I said calmly, noting that the Commander and Spectre were suddenly far more attentive. "We had never encountered another sentient life-form before, but unlike most first contact scenarios which suggest peaceful negotiations our first knowledge of the Covenant came from them raiding supply ships. You see, the Covenant were not just one alien race, but a conglomeration of many. Our first contact was with the Kig-Yar, nicknamed Jackals by the rank and file for their appearance. They were space pirates and our first true contact came when two marine sergeants destroyed the alien ship when it boarded theirs."

"The Office of Naval Intelligence officer who was there believed they were only one race and hoped to establish a more peaceful contact and negotiations. However the aliens that arrived were not the small and birdlike Jackals, but rather the first Jiralhane, nicknamed Brutes, that we encountered. The encounter went south and the war started with the glassing of Harvest."

I saw the looks of confusion on the faces of those listening and so I clarified what I meant by 'glassing'.

"The Covenant used plasma weaponry and when they encountered a planet of ours that had nothing of interest to them they do not conquer it. Instead they drop their ships into low orbit and burned the surface until nothing lives there. We call it 'glassing' because the heat involved is so intense it can actually turn sand into glass. We lost hundreds of colonies that way, billions of lives ended because we can't space battles without massively outnumbering our enemies, tactical genius or sacrificing ships and the people on-board to keep our more powerful ships in the fight."

The looks of horror were familiar to me and I had seen far worse on the faces of those who watched their planet burn.

I described the Covenant war in great detail, telling them everything that I and Serah knew. My voice cracked when I got to the glassing of Reach but I pushed past it, trying to ignore the pain I felt at the still recent loss of the planet that had been my home for decades. If jaws had dropped at nature of the Covenant and their brutality though, they were nothing compared to the shock on their faces when I told them about Halo.

I told them how I and John had made it off Reach with Linda, escaping on the Pillar of Autumn as the Covenant burned the planet and many of our siblings. I described the Ring, what we had discovered of the Forerunners while there. Then I finally found the strength to tell them of the horror that had hidden there for millennia. "There were worse things on Halo than the Covenant," I said and all eyes snapped to me. "We found something there, something ancient. Something as old as the Forerunners themselves." I took a deep breath, calming myself.

"They are called the Flood. They are essentially a parasite, a living organism that feeds on others. But they are not simply a local illness or disease. They are a galactic plague. They are the creatures that wiped out the Forerunners. You see, a single flood organism is easy to kill. Indeed, you could kill one with a finger for they are merely a paper thin bag of gases with tentacles. But what they can do is horrifying. The Flood take hosts, burrowing into the nervous system of their victim and taking control of it, wiping their mind and replacing all intelligence with nothing but a ravenous hunger. They mutate the bodies of those they control, playing with their flesh. Healthy and strong races become what we call combat forms; they keep their basic shape but are heavily mutated to make them more deadly, becoming stronger and faster. Those that are weak become carriers, giant balls on legs that contain infection forms, sometimes dozens of them."

"I and John only survived facing them because the infection forms couldn't breach our armour except through the neck seal and because we watched each other's backs. Cortana and Serah further aided us and it was they who discovered what Halo truly was. You see, we had assumed it was a weapon designed to kill the Flood but what they discovered was that such extermination was not possible. What the Forerunners had done was not create a weapon that could exterminate the Flood, but one that could exterminate their food. If the Halo Rings were activated then all life in the galaxy would be wiped out and the Flood would starve."

"We knew what we had to do. We had to destroy the Ring. We found Captain Keyes who had been almost assimilated by the Flood, presumably in an attempt to take from him the location of all of our colonies, and we took his CNI tags. Using them we set the Autumn to self-destruct, knowing that the resulting explosion would shatter the Ring."

"We made our way back to Earth, on our way finding several of our brothers and sisters still alive on Reach for the Covenant had not fully glassed it. Between us and Earth however was a Covenant advance fleet that we destroyed. We finally reached Earth, but it was not for long."

"It was a reward ceremony. John, me, Miranda Keyes – the daughter of the Autumn's Captain and a Sergeant, Johnson. We were on-board an Orbital Defence Platform, ODP, when Cortana alerted us that a Covenant battle-group had arrived in the system. We weren't prepared and they fought their way through our defences and landed on Earth. That was my last day in my time. That was the 21st October, 2552."

"We were actually winning, destroying their forces on the ground. Both John and I were deployed to New Mombasa where the Covenant had a Super-Carrier in low orbit. Our objective? Eliminate Covenant ground forces and if possible find a way to board it. We certainly accomplished the first one easily enough, even taking down a Scarab. But then the Carrier jumped to slipspace inside the city. John was on-board the In Amber Clad and I hope they made it through, but I was on a Pelican and was caught in the blast. Next thing I know I'm here."

It took a minute for the three to collect themselves but this time it was the Commander who spoke. "Several times you have talked about you and a few others achieving things that even an N7 squad could never accomplish without support. How was your group so effective?"

Ah, the question I had been waiting for.

"We were part of the SPARTAN II Project. The aim was to create soldiers that would be fanatically loyal, unbelievably capable and incredibly lethal. To achieve this we were taken from our families as children and trained on Reach. It was brutal. We were not even teens when they took us in for the augmentations. They were… painful. There had been over seventy of us when we went into the augmentations but when we came out only thirty-three were left."

"Near the beginning of the Covenant War we were introduced to the MJOLNIR Mk IV, a precursor of the armour I am wearing now. It improved our reaction times, speed and strength. Twenty-seven years of war were to follow and believe me Commander, twenty-seven years of fighting can turn even the greenest recruit into a demon that makes people quake in their boots and we weren't green recruits to begin with. The MJOLNIR Mk V came just before Reach fell, giving us shielding and the ability to carry AI," I said and was shocked when the Spectre and the Commander both pulled weapons on me.

"You can put those guns down and we can talk about this or I will put you down," I growled. They hesitated but acquiesced when I stood and loomed over them. "Why did you pull weapons on me?" I asked, still tense.

"AI have been outlawed in Citadel space for centuries," Nihlus explained. "Indeed another race, the Quarians, were exiled for creating a race of them."

"Oh yes, those arguments," I said, scowling. "Let me guess. AI can't feel emotion therefore have no empathy and so cannot be trusted as they will undoubtedly betray any living organism the first chance they get?" At the nods I continued. "The UNSC found a way around that problem. You see we do not actually create artificial intelligence. However I am no expert so I will let my own AI explain it to you," I said, taking Serah's chip from its place in the back of my skull and slotting it into a holo-projector that I had been keeping for almost as long as I had her.

Her avatar appeared above it, a stern looking woman wearing a lab coat. She explained the basics of UNSC AI creation to them, going into detail when asked a question though those were few and far between as the three spent most of their time looking shocked that they were actually talking to an AI that wasn't trying to kill them. Eventually she finished and nodded to them before looking at me expectantly. I pulled her from the holo-projector and slapped the chip back into place in my skull, feeling the now familiar rush of cold as I put the projector back where I took it from. _"I swear this gets more roomy every time," _Serah whispered, making me smile.

I turned to the three. "As I was saying, the Mk V enabled us to carry AI which further heightened our reaction speeds. The suit itself was also superior to the Mk IV in all the aspects they shared, including a smaller fusion reactor and thousands of other minor technical improvements."

"The Mk VI is the armour I am wearing now, released into active service only shortly before I ended up here. It is almost as much an improvement over the Mk V as the Mk V is over the Mk IV with enhanced shielding, biofoam auto-dispensers and improved synchronisation between the suit and the user, allowing us to run faster, hit harder and jump higher than the previous versions allowed."

Anderson asked the next question. "What are you capable of when in that suit?"

"In the augmentations my bones were strengthened, my physical strength and speed increased along with my reaction speed, eyesight and growth. These elevated my capabilities to super-human levels. I am capable of running at an average speed of fifty-five kilometres per hour and have been known when in armour to reach speeds of sixty to sixty-one kilometres per hour. Even unarmoured I am capable of lifting four-hundred and fifty-six kilograms without straining. My armour multiplies that, allowing me to lift over two tons relatively easily. Given the right leverage I can lift far more than that. My reaction speeds are at an average of twenty milliseconds when armoured but with the addition of Serah my average is actually ten milliseconds."

"Simply put sir, I am the most dangerous man you have ever met and will ever meet. With the skills I have learned and the enhancements I have been given I could kill all three of you, likely before you could even draw a weapon. But I have no wish to."

Here were more questions, more answers. Then it was my turn. I asked them about their galaxy, the Citadel, the other races they had encountered and why they were here. A shakedown run apparently. It seemed I would be there for days before we were interrupted by a voice coming from a speaker. It was the pilot, telling us there was a transmission from Eden Prime that we had to see. I knew not what planet he meant and so stood at the back while the other three stared at the screen. It showed a video of a giant ship descending onto a planet's surface, soldiers firing their weapons and a woman in white and pink armour before the cameraman collapsed and the image faded to static.

I looked at the Captain and the Spectre before speaking. "This wasn't just a shakedown run, was it sir?"

**Author's Note: Sorry about the delay, internet's been kicking up a storm lately.**

**Mostly a filler chapter unfortunately but you'll be getting some more interesting stuff happening next chapter. I'm still contemplating whether or not Nihlus should survive but rest assured, you'll find out soon enough. If you have any preferences on that, leave a review or send me a message.**

**Reviews are what give authors the inspiration to carry on. Anything useful you have to say will be welcome. Thanks go to Admiral0mass for the being the first person to ever review something I've written on fanfiction and I'm glad you like it.**

**For those of you who may be worried about Ethan being too OP, I can understand that. Yes, he is going to absolutely destroy most of the enemies he comes up against simply because he's a Spartan. However the larger Geth like Primes and Colossi, overwhelming numbers, Krogan, Asari Commandos, etc. will still be able to put serious dents in him.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**SSV Normandy SR1**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 12:28**

It seemed the Captain wanted me to stay behind for this mission, instead sending the Spectre and the Commander down to the surface. "Captain, I assure you that I will not hinder this mission. I understand your reasoning but I cannot just stand by and watch as others fight. It goes against everything I was ever taught, everything I learned in twenty-seven years of war. I am almost certainly the most skilled combatant on this ship, forcing me to stay behind is just damaging the Commander and Spectre's chances of success."

"No Petty Officer," was Anderson's response. "You do not know our tactics or our rules of engagement. You know nothing about any of the enemies we might face. This makes you a liability on the ground"

Had I been any less disciplined, I might have punched something. As it was I settled for folding my arms and addressing Anderson directly. "The last thing I am sir, is a liability. I have faced nightmares so horrifying that the solution was to wipe the galaxy of life. I have fought in a war against a conglomeration of alien races that wanted nothing more than to exterminate humanity one planet at a time. I have partaken in dozens of missions classed as suicidal and come out the other side, mission accomplished." Anderson brushed me off, repeating his refusal. "So what am I to do sir?" The question was asked calmly and I let no emotion show on my face but inside I was seething.

"I will assign a marine to show you around the ship. Beyond that what you do is up to you, but I will not drop you off with the ground team."

I was about to respond but Serah stopped me with words spoken in a thoughtful tone. _"You know, we aren't actually that high up. Red Team were almost as high as this when they jumped out of a Pelican above Reach. After all, the Captain only said that he wouldn't drop us off, not that we couldn't make our own way down there."_ She actually giggled when she finished and I had to hide a smile as I nodded to Anderson, indicating my acceptance of his terms.

When he turned his back to call over a marine I slid my helmet onto my head, finally allowing myself to smirk as I thought of what I was planning to do. Was it reckless? Most definitely. Was it stupid? Depends who you asked. But I knew that Red Team had survived a drop like this in Mk IV suits which meant my Mk VI was a distinct advantage. Add that to the hydrostatic gel in my suit and I had no doubt that I could survive this fall with minor injuries at the most. It was just where I would be jumping from that was the problem. That is, unless Joker had left the cargo bay door open.

I followed the marine down there where he started pointing out things I may have missed when I first arrived but I ignored it all except the button he said opened the cargo door and I strode to the Pelican.

"What are you doing sir?" The marine asked the question hesitantly and shrank away from me as I turned, looking down at him. He waved me to go on but continued following me, pausing outside the Pelican as I strode up the ramp. I grabbed a battle rifle, maglocking it to my back next to my assault rifle and grabbing ammo before striding over to the button he had said opened the doors. I looked at him. "Get out of here marine. You cannot follow me where I am going." The words were spoken calmly and when the man looked at the button I had my hand on he paled and fled, dashing back to the lift that would take him out of the bay.

I slammed my hand against the button and strode out into the centre of the hangar as the doors opened slowly, letting in a rush of air before the odd field appeared and blocked it off. I paced forward, walking until I reached the edge of the field where I stopped and gazed down at the ground. _"You know, I can't believe I actually suggested this," _Serah suddenly sounded nervous. _"I mean, we don't even know how close to the others we'll land. We could be kilometres away"_

I chuckled. "Serah, as long as I don't suffer too many injuries I can cover about a kilometre per minute at full speed. I don't think we'll be too far away. We just need to wait until the Normandy is over their location which should be in about thirty seconds." There are times when the ability to create electronic tags is really useful as Serah had proved; I could see exactly where Shepard and her squad were, as well as the location of Nihlus. So I waited until I was directly above Shepard's position and then I stepped forward, off the ship.

* * *

**Captain David Anderson**

**SSV Normandy SR1**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 12:36**

Anderson was standing in the CIC when the marine he had sent with the Spartan dashed through a doorway. "Sir," the man said, panting. He sounded terrified

"Yes?" Anderson's response was calm and quiet.

"The man you asked me to watch, he's just," the man paused and gulped. "Well sir, I am afraid that I think he's just jumped out of the cargo bay."

Anderson's eyes widened and he turned quickly, walking to where the security feed for the cargo bay was and saw the open door and the distinct lack of any Spartan. He played back the tape of the previous couple of minutes. He saw the Spartan enter, ignoring the marine who was supposed to be his guide as he strode towards the craft he had arrived in. He watched as the Spartan came back down the ramp with something on his back, some kind of harness and pack. He was still watching as the Spartan strode to the button to open the hangar bay doors and told the marine to get out. Soon after the Spartan slammed the button down and the hatch opened.

Anderson felt his jaw drop as the Spartan strode up to the edge of the bay and wait thirty seconds before stepping out and dropping like a stone. As he rocked back on his heels, stunned, the only thing Anderson could think was that he had seriously underestimated the quality of the man if he was willing to throw himself out of a ship in the upper atmosphere to go to the aid of people he didn't even know. It would take some getting used to for the Captain to be able to work with the Spartan, that was for sure.

* * *

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**SSV Normandy SR1**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 12:36**

I couldn't help but think that this may have been one of the most stupid things I had ever done as I plummeted towards the ground. Still, so long as I survived the impact I could deal with the consequences later which I must admit was not something I was looking forward to. I was expecting a harsh reprimand once this was over and done with but for now I had to just go with it. Not like I could change my mind and climb back onto the Normandy now was it. "This may have been one of the dumbest ideas we've ever had Serah," I said, chuckling despite the situation.

_"__I find myself agreeing with you Ethan. It is certainly more original than just sitting on the ship and waiting but with that originality comes a much higher chance of death from the impact on the planet's surface." _Her response was oddly calm but then again this was her idea so her having a breakdown while I was calm would be mildly hypocritical, something she completely hated being.

She may have been regretting it but I found myself enjoying the thrill as the air rushed past me. Considering my weight my terminal velocity would be very high and I idly wondered how close I was to it before beginning to laugh.

_"__What is so funny Ethan?"_

"I found myself wondering about my terminal velocity and how close I was to it. We're falling from eight fricking kilometres and all I can think about is my terminal velocity? That's why I'm laughing."

_"__Oh"_

"Exactly."

I broke through the upper cloud barrier so that all that filled my vision above and below me was white for as far as the eye could see. I finally shifted my body into a sky diving position before tilting down, accelerating my descent while constantly keeping an eye on my distance from Shepard. Serah's voice interrupted my reverie. _"Time to start working on us surviving this thing Ethan, rather than daydreaming." _Her tone was stern but with a thread of humour woven through it and I smirked before bringing down a menu on my HUD for the hydrostatic gel in my suit.

I broke through the last barrier of cloud and could see the ground, details growing larger as I fell closer. I could see small lights that I guessed were muzzle flashes and I oriented myself so that I would land behind the group that seemed to be firing on Shepard's location, judged from the marker that highlighted her in my HUD. I kept my incoming angle flat and aimed for the trees, hoping they would slow me enough for me to survive the fall. If not, well I had lived a good enough life and I had done my duty. Still, if I was killed by my own stupidity I would be pissed.

In the moment before impact I over-pressurised my hydrostatic gel to the max, tucking my arms and legs in. I felt a sharp pain across my body, like a million tiny knives stabbing me. It is not a feeling I could ever get used to, despite having felt it before during my augmentation procedures.

But it lasted only a moment before I slammed into the ground, ploughing a furrow in the earth. I stood slowly, Serah running a diagnostic on my health and telling me of any injuries I had while I felt the sharp sting of bio-foam being injected into me to help me heal. I was not too damaged however and could still move, albeit more stiffly than usual. But that did not matter for I knew I would still be able to move faster and more fluidly than any of the team that were on the ground. Then I remembered what Fred had told me about what happened to his weapons and my hand moved to my hip, checking that I still had my pistol. I checked the rest and it turned out I had been lucky, losing only some ammo and a couple of grenades.

I moved towards the waypoint that marked Shepard's location and when I came out of the trees I saw that she was pinned alongside Alenko and the woman who had been in the message, the one in pink and white armour. I heard their conversation.

"What do you think that thing was that fell from the sky?" Alenko asked the question and it was a good one but not one that Shepard or the other woman would have an answer.

"No idea," was Shepard's response, shaking her head before turning her attention to the final member of the group. "What about you Gunnery Chief, you know of anything it could've been."

"It might have been Geth," was the Gunnery Chief's response. They all seemed to dismiss it, turning their attention back to their opponents. I took a moment to examine them and let Serah begin her analysis.

_"__Subject appears to be mechanical, most likely controlled by an AI. Subjects appear to share a joint intelligence, working as one rather than as a group of individuals. Head is a major weak point, functioning as eye and likely containing data storage for controlling AI. Joints appear thin, possible weakness. Likely that a virus could be developed to damage programming of subjects, however jamming communications may also prove effective." _She paused for a moment as if considering something. _"Subjects are likely the reason for fear of AI. If they are a race of sentient machines that turned against their creators, likely that this would create a fear of all AI. Recommend engaging with extreme prejudice."_

I slipped the BR55 from my back and hefted it, waiting for the link between it and my HUD to be established and the aiming reticule to become apparent. I pressed the butt to my shoulder and settled it there, bringing the rifle to aim at the head of the closest machine, a red one hefting something that looked like some form of rocket launcher. It raised the weapon to aim it at Shepard and her group and I could see it focussing. Determined to stop it killing either of the three, I pulled the trigger.

The three round burst hit something and the first two were stopped dead before the third one blew past whatever had blocked the others and caught the thing in the head, sending it keeling over backwards.

_"__Subjects appear to have personal energy shielding however it is not very effective, falling after two hits from a BR55."_

All eyes were apparently drawn to the loud retort of the battle rifle for as I had earlier noted none of the weapons of this universe had quite so satisfying a sound after being fired. I switched targets and fired again, this time putting down a dark grey machine with two bursts to the chest. Then Shepard and her two companions got over their shock and opened fire on the machines. We mopped them up quickly for it seemed that every one that died made the rest dumber. I didn't even use that much ammo, killing a few before sitting back and watching Shepard and her squad eliminate the rest. She was good it seemed, far better than the two around her.

Then it was over and she was walking towards me. I strode down the rise to greet her, leaving my helmet on.

"When I wished I had someone to help us kill the Geth that had us pinned, I didn't expect it to actually come true." The words were spoken with a tinge of humour. She was actually trying to make a joke, probably expecting me to view it as funny. I had never been one for humour beyond sarcasm however and so did not respond, making her shift slightly before getting to a real point with a sensible question.

"Did Anderson let you down here? He told me you would be remaining on the ship. Also, while you were on your way here did you see what it was that fell that from the sky?"

Now I was the one to shift uncomfortably. "It was me. The Captain told me that he wouldn't give me a lift down to the surface so I made my own way. I jumped out of the Normandy while she was flying eight kilometres up. Not my brightest idea admittedly but it isn't in my nature to just stand by while others fight. As you observed, it is a good thing that I got here as those, Geth, as you called them had you pinned and would likely have killed you had I not arrived. I have to tell you though, don't expect me to repeat that anytime soon as it hurt like a bitch and I will take a while to heal completely from it."

I looked at her, expecting a response. But what I saw was shock. Her mouth was open, her eyes wide. When she eventually spoke, she spoke slowly and barely avoided stuttering. "You jumped off the Normandy and fell eight kilometres?"

"Yes."

"How the hell are you still alive?"

"This armour and excellent timing. I'm lucky. The last time Spartans tried this several died and only a few got out without serious injuries while I am relatively unharmed. I didn't lose my weapons either which is very fortunate."

She was still just standing there with a stunned expression on her face so I put one hand on her shoulder and shook her. "Commander, Jane, snap out of it. You can ask me as many questions as you want once we're finished here but for now we need to move on."

She smiled then and nodded firmly, turning and calling the other two over. She told them what I had told her and I got two more stunned looks of disbelief.

The woman in the white and pink armour whispered something to Shepard though I heard her plainly. Advantage of the suit and augmentations. "Commander, what or who the hell is that?"

Shepard's response was at the same volume and therefore just as audible. "That Gunnery Chief is the most dangerous man I've ever met. Do not mess with him."

"I have no intention of harming you Gunnery Chief," I said, making them turn to me in surprise. "I am just a soldier doing his duty." I walked slightly close and looked at Shepard "Commander, we need to move. I request permission to scout ahead." A nod was the response and I moved away, checking Nihlus' position in comparison to mine before beginning to make my way towards him. Travelling down a low rise I saw an open space with several more of those Geth in it. There was what looked like a pedestal in the middle that was empty and the machines were seemingly guarding the location despite there being nothing to guard. I wondered whether they were a rear guard but then this strike had been so fast and so effective that there was no way they could've predicted anyone arriving to help. Indeed we had only got there because the Normandy was already en-route.

I continued towards the Geth, slowing to a walk and bringing my rifle up. The closest one died first, collapsing as I broke through its shields and put three rounds into its flashlight head. That alerted the rest who turned in unison and opened fire on me, forcing me to dive into cover as my shields steadily declined. So, their weapons were effective. Good to know. I stepped out into their line of sight and threw a grenade at a group of three, switching my aim to one that was steadily advancing until I blew its right arm off at the elbow. Six targets remaining, four when the grenade went off and destroyed two, leaving the third smoking and damaged.

They were too close for the BR55 now so as I ducked back into cover I maglocked it to my back. Rather than taking my MA5 however I pulled the hilt from my left thigh with my right hand.

I threw myself out of cover, rolling and coming to my feet before charging. The remaining four Geth had grouped together, standing close enough to support each other while far away enough that a grenade could not kill all of them. It didn't matter because for what I planned their spacing was just fine.

I crashed into the first one, driving my shoulder into it and sending it sprawling before twisting to one side away from the shots of the nearest of its fellows, a larger Geth carrying a shotgun. As I twisted I clenched my fist on the hilt, pressing the activation rune as I brought my body round. The shimmering blade of the energy sword flashed into being, slicing through the shield and torso of the Geth quickly and cleanly before I brutally kicked it in the chest, violently separating the two halves.

I was still turning to face the third Geth head on and my left hand pulled my pistol from its holster and I fired once, twice, a third time. Its shield broke with the first two and the third smashed its head and sent it staggering backwards only to fall as the AI finally realised it was dead. The first Geth behind me, the one I had sent sprawling, began climbing to its feet and I snapped my right leg out in a back kick that caved in its chest and sent it back down into the dirt. The final Geth, a white one, finally turned to face me and fired a missile that I only just dodged by hitting the dirt, a position from which I opened fire on it.

This one had advanced shielding though for my rounds failed to break through before the Geth had dropped some kind of hexagonal energy shield not unlike the portable ones the Covenant had been so fond of.

I deactivated my sword and maglocked it to my hip before climbing to my feet and advancing, still firing shots with the pistol in my left hand. I watched as the shield changed colours, finally settling on red before one final shot caused it to fail and revealed the white Geth. I ducked to one side and maglocked my pistol as the Geth fired a volley of shots before stepping in close and tearing the weapon out of its hands. Then I was moving fast, smacking it in the side of the head so that it twisted before kicking it in the back of the knee to cause it to fall. I grabbed hold of its head with both hands and, pushing its body down with one foot and yanking its head up with my hands, I heard a tearing sound as I ripped its head clean off and was sprayed with some white fluid that must be what classed as their blood.

There was an exclamation of shock behind me and someone swore and I turned to see Shepard and her squad looking at me with no small amount of awe and horror.

It seemed this was the beacon location and that it had been moved to the spaceport earlier according to the Gunnery Chief, Ashley Williams. We moved up to the research camp and found it destroyed, only to be attacked by what I now know to be Husks. I tore them apart fairly quickly and Shepard's group explored the camp while I stood on the outskirts and watched for Geth. They had returned and we were moving towards the space port when something happened.

A shot rang out and Nihlus' marker vanished.

**Author's Note: Finally you get to see a Spartan in action, though I must admit these fights did kinda suck. What can I say, a Spartan vs any less than a dozen Geth is going to win. I did try to introduce a bit of variety into the kills though rather than just having him shoot them all.**

**Yeah, I know Anderson's POV was really short. No, you shouldn't expect to see it again except for maybe when the Normandy is escaping the Citadel to go after Saren on Ilos.**

**Thanks for the review spectre, glad you like the story. I probably will kill Nihlus as is suggested by the last line of the chapter though I have been toying with the idea of putting him in a coma or crippling him instead. Sorry to hear you hate AI but just think of the conversations with Tali, EDI and/or Legion. Also the Spartan cannon sounds like a fantastic idea, why didn't the UNSC ever think of it? Just fire the Master Chief at your enemies and voila, instant win.**

**Again, please review people. Fifteen of you are following, four have made it a favourite and yet I still only have two reviews. My poor heart.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**Eden Prime**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 12:50**

As soon as the marker vanished I was sprinting to where I had last seen it. I ran past several Geth, simply ignoring them as I made my way to the place where Nihlus' marker vanished.

I crested a small rise and looked down into what looked like a space port. There were several of those spikes that I had seen at the research base and these too had corpses speared on them. There was also a tightening ring of Geth around two Turians. One lay on the ground with a pool of red around him while the other stood guard, gunning down the Geth that were trying to attack him.

I recognized the one on the floor as Nihlus, though the one standing over him was unfamiliar to me. His fierce defence of Nihlus' prone form instantly granted him respect in my mind for the Turian was unflinching. I was impressed I must admit, for no Geth could get even within ten feet of them without dying. His speed and accuracy were among the best I had ever seen. Still the Geth were getting steadily closer and I knew that he couldn't hold out much longer.

I tugged the assault rifle from my back and began to run down the hill, keeping it braced against my shoulder as I did so. I opened fire in short, measured bursts at first, keeping the rounds trained on individual Geth until they went down, after which I switched targets to the next Geth unlucky enough to come into my sights.

I didn't even know who the Turian I was fighting with was but it seemed he was experienced for just as I was adapting to work with his combat style, so he was adapting to work with mine. We fought surprisingly similarly; there were no fancy moves, no wasted energy or ammo. Just pure, brutal efficiency.

I was at ten metres from the Geth now and so I took my right hand from the grip of my rifle and used it to toss a plasma grenade. It caught a white Geth in the shields but rather than bouncing off as they seemed to expect it too it stuck to the shimmering field, detonating a couple of seconds later in a wash of blue that incinerated the Geth as well as several of its fellows. The rest fastened their gaze on where their fellows had once stood with what seemed to be confusion. I took full advantage.

Three more Geth were down before they recovered and I was among them then. I smashed one in the chest with the stock of my gun before putting twelve rounds into its torso, ensuring it would stay down for good. I drew my pistol with my left hand as my assault rifle mag ran out.

When my pistol mag ran out too there were only three Geth left. The first went down as a round from the Turian's pistol smashed its head. I ripped the right arm off the second one and smashed it around the head with the limb before I ended the final Geth with a kick to the head that removed it entirely, sending white fluid spraying from the neck of the machine as it staggered before collapsing backwards with a thud.

I retrieved my dropped weapons and turned to where the unfamiliar Turian was currently crouched over Nihlus, what looked like a medical kit on the ground next to him. I approached them quickly, not even blinking when the Turian snapped his gaze up and glared at me. I ignored him, sinking to my knees next to Nihlus and moved my hands to my thigh. Within moments I had opened up the armour and pulled out a canister of bio-foam. I gently turned Nihlus' head so that the back of his skull was visible to me.

I muttered a curse and sank back onto my heels, dropping the bio-foam. "I'm sorry," I said, addressing the Turian. "The bullet has entered his skull and destroyed his brain. There's nothing we can do."

His head snapped up as he stared at me. "That bitch," he cursed. "I'll tear her apart for this."

I was about to ask him who he was and who had attacked Nihlus when I noted fast approaching dots on my motion tracker. I stood and was just pulling out my assault rifle when something hit me in the side and exploded, knocking me back. More Geth had come.

* * *

**Commander Jane Shepard**

**Eden Prime**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 12:50**

As soon as they heard the shot the Spartan was moving, sprinting towards its location at a speed that caused him to blur to the human eye. Jane called after him but he either didn't hear her or simply ignored her for his pace didn't even slow.

The Commander cursed and called Williams and Alenko over. "Commander," Alenko said as he reached her, his voice calm and businesslike. Williams also addressed her by the honorific, though the Gunnery Chief's voice was much less calm than the Lieutenant's. No surprise really considering her squad had been almost completely wiped out.

"You heard the shot?" Shepard asked them, to which they nodded. "The Spartan just took off in that direction travelling faster than anything I've ever seen before. We'll need to go after him."

Williams tapped Shepard's arm as the Commander was turning, causing her to halt and look back at the younger woman. Williams took a breath before speaking. "With respect ma'am, who, or rather what, is he?"

"That's a long story Gunnery Chief and I can't take the time to tell it here, nor is it even mine to tell. You really want to know? Ask him when we're done here."

The Gunnery Chief nodded in acquiescence and didn't press the matter, allowing Shepard to focus on moving her team after the trail the Spartan had dug in the dirt. Apparently, avoiding making a trail hadn't been part of his training; either that or he knew something Shepard didn't. The possibility of the latter worried the Commander and left her wondering how he could know something she and her team didn't.

It seemed the Spartan really had been desperate to reach the source of the shot she mused as she led her team in the same direction. After all, they had only been travelling for half a minute before they encountered Geth that he had apparently left behind in his mad dash.

It was relatively simple for them to eliminate the Geth at first for they were only basic platforms and drones. However as they began to hear the sounds of a fight ahead of them they also began encountering more advanced Geth, including shock and rocket platforms and even a few destroyers.

The first Destroyer the team encountered almost killed Shepard herself for they hadn't seen the shimmer that told of a stealth field. The first they knew of what was when Shepard was smashed against a tree and the Geth shimmered into view, pressing the barrel of its shotgun under her chin. Only quick reflexes on the part of Alenko saved her life for he caught the machine with a blast from his shotgun that dropped its shields, followed by a Biotic Throw that sent it flying off to Shepard's right where Williams finished it off with a burst of fire.

The Commander was pissed that she couldn't fight at her optimal efficiency against the machines, leaving her squad to do much more than she was comfortable with. The Geth had shields as a rule which left her Biotics useless until the shields were dropped, at which point they died incredibly quickly anyway. At least Alenko was a Sentinel and so could use his tech skills, skills that the Commander unfortunately lacked having been trained as an Adept. Still, many of the Geth that lost their shields to her were met with a death from one of her Biotic abilities, or even combos between multiple ones. Some were quite creative. Others were torturous; legacies of seeing what the Batarians had done on Mindoir and Elysium.

It wasn't long before they crested the same rise the Spartan had reached only a few minutes before. In the centre was a scene of carnage. In the centre of it all Nihlus lay with blood around him but there was another Turian who was currently fighting with the Spartan against a force of Geth that seemed to have moved in from the spaceport. Shepard and her squad ran down to join them.

The Turian was good. Better than Alenko and Williams for sure. Better than Shepard herself, who was reckoned one of the finest to ever graduate from the N7 Academy. Indeed the Turian was quite possibly one of the best combatants she had ever met. But the Spartan was in a whole different league. Here he was, thrown into an unfamiliar universe less than a day before. From what she could tell his time had nothing like Biotics and even shielding was rare. But he was adapting to it with incredible speed.

Already he could fight with the others as if he had experience doing so, covering blind spots even they didn't know about. It was frightening to be honest. This man who hadn't even known any of them for more than a day was already capable of fighting with them as if they were a unit that had been fighting for years.

They demolished the Geth force in short order, along with a wave of reinforcements that followed a few minutes after Shepard got there. When she turned she saw the Turian kneeling beside Nihlus' body with the Spartan crouched opposite him. She walked softly to them and opened her mouth to speak.

* * *

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**Eden Prime**

**July 18****th****, 2183 – 01:08**

"What happened to him?"

I looked up at the sound of Shepard's voice, seeing her standing a little behind me and to my left. I looked back at the Turian who finally looked up from Nihlus' body.

"I am a Spectre like he was. I was sent here with another by the Council to ensure that the retrieval of the beacon went as planned after several STG teams reported unusual activity beyond the Perseus Veil. The other Spectre with me was an Asari, Tela Vasir. One of our best. We arrived on this planet shortly before you were due to do so, though not before the Geth arrived. We had fought our way here, hoping to intercept the beacon. Instead we met Nihlus. I was scouting ahead when I heard the shot. That bitch shot Nihlus in the back of the head and ran before I could get to her."

I heard the approach of another so it was no surprise when Alenko asked a question.

"With respect sir, who are you?"

The Turian looked up. "I am Saren Arterius"

**Author's Note: So, I did decide to kill Nihlus. What can I say, I agree with you spectre. His death really does set the series in motion.**

**Sorry it took so long.**

**Chapters probably won't be as long as the first three from now on, but this one is shorter than most will be because it felt right to end it there**

**I hope you liked the little twist at the end. What can I say, Saren is awesome and I always thought that it would be interesting if he was actually against Sovereign and the Reapers.**

**spectre 17491: I agree. Krogan Battlemasters will be able to match Ethan one-on-one, but none of the lesser ones in this. Two-on-one will cause problems sure, but one-on-one he would demolish them**

**Guest: I approve of your theory. Believe me, I intend to see this through to the bitter end. At the very least I promise I'll write up to the end of the first game, even if I can't go beyond that.**

**Colonial Marine: If you look back to the bottom of the first chapter, I've mentioned my reasoning there.**

**ultimate idiot: That's because in the first chapter I hadn't gotten to the point where I could use any of my more original and less common ideas. One of them is in this chapter.**

**Wolfshark: I don't know, I've always been rather partial to planet killer weaponry when telling someone they're screwed so I see your Spartan and raise you a NOVA Bomb. I'll have a check through my other chapters at some point and fix any errors. Thank you.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**SSV Normandy**

**July 19****th****, 2183 – 03:19**

I shot upright from where I had been unceremoniously dumped on a medical bed, already moving into a ready position as I slipped off the bed and on to my feet.

I scanned my surroundings, noting the desk on the opposite wall and the two doors, one to my left and one to my right. Shepard was on a bed to my right, unconscious and dressed in the same uniform the crew of the ship had been wearing when I arrived.

_'__Thank God you're awake Ethan,' _Serah's familiar worried tone rang out in my head. _'You've been out for almost eleven hours.'_

I stopped moving for a second, shocked. "Six hours? Jesus. I haven't been out for that long since before the augmentations."

_'__What did you see while you were under? I may not be able to read your mind but I could see unusual levels of brain activity and REM, both indicative of a dream. But from the way your mind was reacting to the stimulus, I doubt this was a simple dream.'_

I grimaced, shaking my head slightly. "You are correct in your doubts. I can only describe it as a vision. I saw death, the death of an entire species." I struggled to reach for the memories and when I couldn't find the full vision I slammed a fist against the medical table, denting the metal. "I can't remember it properly, just flashes of destruction, there and gone in a single moment. What I saw was worse than what happened at Reach, I got that much."

There was silence for a few moments, at least until the med-bay door opened and a stern looking woman with grey hair marched in. At least, until she saw me standing at ease in the centre of the room. The sight stopped her in the middle of the doorway.

"You should still be unconscious," she said, a shocked expression on her face. "I didn't expect you to wake up for at least another four hours."

"I make a habit of doing the opposite of what I'm expected to ma'am. If you would, please let Captain Anderson and Spectre Arterius know that I am awake and willing to answer any questions they have."

The doctor hesitated before nodding and she left, coming back a few minutes later with the Captain and Saren in tow. Anderson dismissed the doctor and the Captain and Spectre walked over

"Saren has already filled me in on what happened during the mission but what I want to know is what happened after he left with Lieutenant Alenko and Gunnery Chief Williams to secure the area," Anderson said in a tone I knew well. After all, it was almost identical to the one CPO Mendez had used when asking for a mission report.

"Commander Shepard had approached the beacon, presumably to investigate why it was glowing. I had stood back, looking for any threats that might have slipped through. But as it turned out, the beacon was the threat. When Shepard neared it she was suddenly pulled in and rose off the ground. I threw a grenade at it before tackling her, throwing us both in the opposite direction. When the frag went off a wave of green energy was thrown from the beacon. The last I remember is being hit by it and collapsing."

Anderson nodded before gesturing to where Shepard still lay. "Doctor Chakwas told me that Shepard seems to be going through intense dreaming, I was wondering if you went through the same."

I was about to respond but Serah hijacked my helmet speakers and spoke instead. _'I can answer that Captain Anderson. As I understand it, Spartan 001 also went through this intense dreaming that you said the Commander is going through. However, he described it as more of a vision than a dream.'_

Anderson's attention switched to me. "A vision?"

"Yes sir. It was of death, destruction. I would tell you more, but nothing about the vision is truly clear."

Saren snorted. "Even if what you say is accurate, we cannot use a vision as evidence that something terrible is coming. The Council deals only in hard fact and even then they prefer to push it under the rug rather than actually do anything."

The level of scorn in his tone was unexpected considering his position as one of the top agents of this Council, but probably warranted considering Anderson was nodding slightly.

"He's right Spartan," Anderson said. "The Council has a reputation of ignoring threats until it's too late. However they have just as much of a reputation for jumping the gun and declaring war without stopping to think. The Rachni Wars and Humanity's First Contact are prime examples of this."

I groaned. "Why is it that no matter what universe you're in, politicians are always idiots?"

Anderson smiled slightly and Saren's mandibles twitched. I straightened and asked a question that had only just occurred to me. "What about Vasir? Do we have any proof that she was involved?"

At that both men grimaced. Saren was the one who spoke however. "Vasir is one of the Council's best Spectres and she's a slippery bitch. I've suspected her of being corrupt for years but there's never any evidence, all I've got to go on is a gut feeling. The only evidence we have that she was involved is eye-witness testimonies and the Council will never accept them as damning evidence. We'll need to find something better or she'll remain untouchable, even for me."

Serah chose that moment to interrupt. _'In the MJOLNIR Suit's databanks I have a few images of an Asari in blue armour directing the Geth, but none of them are high quality and only one of them shows enough of her for identification to be possible.'_

"Looks like we're on our own for now then," I said, resisting the urge to scowl.

They both nodded and turned to leave, Anderson pausing just before stepping out. "Do me the favour of telling Shepard everything we just discussed when she wakes up Petty Officer. I have a feeling she'll be important in taking down Vasir."

"Aye sir."

* * *

**Commander Jane Shepard**

**SSV Normandy**

**July 19****th****, 2183 – 07:31**

Shepard opened her eyes to a featureless golden visor staring down at her. Ethan, she thought before frowning. She didn't know why her mind had immediately jumped to his first name, rather than his nature as a Spartan.

"Doctor Chakwas," he called. "Shepard's awake, you might want to check on her. If she's reacted to the beacon in the way I did, she'll have a cluster headache in less than five minutes that'll last at least four hours and it's looking like it'll reach five."

Chakwas' expression was almost comical after he finished but the doctor had the decency to pass Shepard some medication before standing in front of the Spartan.

"You mean to tell me that you've had a cluster headache since you woke up without telling me? You may be a genetically engineered super soldier but that doesn't mean anything in here. This is my med bay and I will look after my patients even if they don't want me to."

She took a breath and Shepard winced in sympathy for the Spartan. Chakwas was unstoppable when she started ranting and the Commander didn't envy the man. But what happened next stunned her.

Ethan held up a hand, cutting Chakwas off mid rant. "I've had worse doctor. Far worse."

"I've been dealing with soldiers for most of my life and I've never encountered one as stubborn as you Petty Officer. It's a miracle you're even standing. I'm telling you now Petty Officer that I will not have stubborn theatrics in my med bay."

Again the Spartan cut her off. "I've gone through an augmentation process that felt like a thousand daggers stabbing me. I've had every single bone in my body broken twice, quite an impressive feat considering my augmentations have made them nearly unbreakable. I've been run over by a hover tank no less than three times. I have had an alien form dig its way into my spine and try to rewrite my entire nervous system. Trust me doctor. A cluster headache is nothing."

There was silence in the med bay for a few moments before Chakwas walked backwards to the medicine cabinet and tossed the Spartan some pain medication. She then turned and left, still not saying a word.

Shepard studied the strange man standing opposite her as he tossed back a handful of the pills like they weren't heavy duty painkillers that would put a normal man out like a light. She saw his eyes glaze over for a moment as the drugs took effect. He shook it off and looked up at her. "The Captain and Arterius were here while you were out. We had a talk on our options and you need to know the details."

* * *

**Petty Officer Second Class Ethan-001**

**SSV Normandy**

**July 19****th****, 2183 – 07:36**

Everything was silent for a minute or so after I finished speaking. That was, until Shepard flashed blue and there was a grinding sound.

I watched silently as she gripped the edge of the medical bed tightly, whatever ability she was using giving her the strength to crumple the metal like it was paper.

"You mean to tell me," she said, her voice low and dangerous. "That we can't go after the bitch responsible for all those deaths because she's one of the Council's bloody lapdogs? Don't they have enough of them already without protecting this one?"

I raised my hands in a gesture for peace. "Commander, I've been in this universe less than two days. I have no idea what the politics are. All I know is that this Vasir's supposed to be one of your Council's top agents and that as far as they're concerned she walks on water, at least until we have irrefutable proof of her guilt."

"I know, I know. But it's hard not to be pissed when I'm told that we can't go after the damned Asari who orchestrated the attack on an Alliance colony and the deaths of hundreds of the colonists. Not that you would understand, you're a machine." The last words were said bitterly, without thinking. But they still hurt.

I straightened abruptly from where I had been leaning against the wall and my voice was ice cold. "I do understand Shepard. I understand better than anyone else ever could. Do you know how many colonies the Covenant glassed? Even I don't, because there are colonies that simply went off the grid and we never knew whether or not they still existed. We started the war with over eight hundred worlds, by the end we had maybe two hundred Do you know how many people died? Before I left, it was estimated in the trillions. I was there for so many of those deaths. I fought tooth and nail on the ground, gave my all and yet still I was forced to watch as men and women died around me. But even after all that, all that had been given, I still failed. I watched planets burn Shepard. I was a witness to the death of billions."

"You call me a machine. Maybe you're right. I had to cut myself off from my humanity to do the things I've done, to stop myself from just collapsing and breaking down. I've seen that happen to people. I've seen hardened soldiers who've fought in a dozen battles just fold up and cry. When the men fell around me, I pushed through. Because I am a Spartan. People called us humanity's last hope. We carried the entire war you know? There was a belief, more than a rumour or a story. A belief shared by almost everyone in the UNSC. Spartans never die. That's what they said. I wish it were true."

I moved forward, looming over her. "Congratulations Commander. You now understand a fraction of what I went through. Pray that you never understand the rest."

Then I strode out, leaving a gaping Shepard behind.

**Author's Note: School sucks. A lot. After all, it's the reason for the massive delay I had in posting this.**

**spectre 17491: Thanks for the compliment.**


End file.
